Is Trump Choosing Putin? · Storyflo

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In the latest chapter of reality, stranger than fiction: Trump and Elon Musk are undercutting Ukraine in ways that seriously benefit Vladimir Putin, over the objections of US allies and a Republican-run Congress. It’s costing lives and the consequences could reach far beyond Ukraine. So why isn’t anyone stopping them?

I spoke with (D-CT), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, about what’s at stake, whether Congress can intervene, and the extraordinary power Musk and Starlink now wield over the war.

We also talk midterms, and what you can do to make sure your vote – and your neighbors votes – are counted. Find that conversation at the top of this email. If you’d prefer to read a transcript of our discussion, find that here.

In this newsletter: Putin’s a “humanitarian”? Protecting elections from Washington. Trump’s latest rear endorsement. Who’s fueling France’s chaos. North Carolina’s Senate surprise. A rare trans rights win. Justice Kagan sounds the alarm. Heat, food or electricity. And in News That Doesn’t Suck, America gets a new national park.

More Talks: The Trump administration is increasing pressure on Ukraine while giving Vladimir Putin remarkably little reason to compromise. Trumpsays“it’s time” for Ukraine to agree to a deal and warns it would be “very bad” if it doesn’t. The Wall Street Journalreportsthat Elon Musk personally imposed restrictions on Ukraine’s access to Starshield, the military version of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet, after discussing it with senior administration officials and with Trump himself. BothTrumpand Muskdeny responsibility. Ukraine says the restrictionshamperedmilitary operations, including its defense against Russian drones. And after Putinreleaseda wrongfully detained American who was reportedly starved and tortured in Russian custody, Trump envoy Steve Witkoff called Putin a “humanitarian.” Really. Witkoff’s praisedrewbipartisan criticism.**Peace Plans:**Putinagreedto resume peace negotiations with Ukraine and the U.S. as soon as next month. But he shows little sign of backing down from his key demands, including control over parts of eastern Ukraine, which Kyiv considers dealbreakers. Putin did, however,offerto help the Trump administration make a deal with Iran and provide fertilizer to U.S. farmers.Don’t Leave Us Out: Volodymyr Zelenskyyinsiststhat Ukraine must be involved in any peace talks. Heofferedto stop striking Russian oil refineries in return for Patriot missile interceptors or Russia halting its attacks on Ukraine’s infrastructure.Shortage of Patriots: That last option may be disappearing. Ukraine is reportedly almost out of the only interceptor missiles it has to stop Russian ballistic missiles. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth isrefusingto approve transfers of additional Patriot interceptor missiles that European countries already paid for, citing America’s own shortage. That wasworsenedby the Iran war.

Protest Meddling: Some expertsbelieveauthoritarian nations, including Russia and Iran, are exploiting and inflaming student protests in France to destabilize the West. France’s foreign ministerclaimedthe demonstrations, which recentlyturned violentand have promptedpartial curfewsacross the country, are being “exploited by hostile narratives coming from Russia, China, Iran, and the MAGA community.”

Not So Free and Fair: Speaking of meddling in Western democracies, foreign governments, including Iran, Russia, and China, arestepping up effortsto influence the U.S. midterm elections. Though many are also worried about interference from closer to home: the Trump administration. A group of current and former national security officials havespent months helpinglawmakers and election officials from both parties prepare for potential federal interference. They’re concerned the administration might deploy troops or immigration agents to poll sites, or use claims of voter fraud to undermine results, according to theWashington Post.Election Watch: As the midterms approach, we’re spotlighting races that could decide control of Congress. Today, we look at North Carolina, where Trump just rallied, a judge upheld voting restrictions, and GOP groups pulled out millions in ads. Read thathere.

Priorities: Trump waxed poetic, for thesecond timein the last week, about Sen. Jon Husted’s (R-OH) “pile of muscle” backside. Seriously. Watch it for yourself here.

New Lows: Multiple polls show Trump’s approval rating at new lows. The exact figure varies between polls —oneputs it at 38%,another36%, andyet anotherat a record-low of just 31%.Rare Treatment: The Supreme Courtblockedthe Trump administration from ending gender-affirming medical care for transgender federal inmates. The unsigned rulingprotects treatmentfor up to 1,000 prisoners while a lawsuit over the administration’s policy to stop providing care, which opponents argue is unconstitutional, continues.Call Coming From Inside the House: Justice Elena Kagancriticizedher conservative colleagues’ rulings on campaign finance and partisan gerrymandering, warning the Court is “blinded” to the fact that it has “created a democracy that does not work as well as it should.” This is particularly noteworthy because multiple Supreme Court lawyers have told me they look to Kagan as the moderate, restrained voice on the court.

Systematic Deception: A New Mexico judgeorderedMeta to pay $25 billion after a jury found it misled users about data privacy. The juryconcludedthat Meta committed a stunning 43millionviolations of New Mexico’s consumer protection laws, which havebecome an effectiveway to hold tech companies accountable. Meta says it plans to appeal.Powerless: Americans are cutting back on food and heat or AC just to keep the lights on. Roughly 20% of Americans are spending less on groceries, and 25% are turning down their heat or AC to uncomfortable levels, to afford their electricity bills, according to anew surveyfrom Consumer Reports. Many people, across party lines, believe rising costs are a result of price gouging by utility companies and new data centers. We break down rising electricity prices and other affordability concernshere.Another West Bank Incident: Israeldetaineddozens of rabbis and activists, many of them Americans, who were helping Palestinian farmers harvest olives in the occupied West Bank. It’s the largest mass detention of activists there in at least a decade,according to experts. Among those detained was congressional candidate Brad Lander. Most were released after several hours, but somereportedlyface deportation and being banned from Israel.Farming for Votes: Trumpannouncedan $8 billion relief program for farmers in a last-minute attempt to stem anger at rising diesel and fertilizer prices before the midterms. That bringsdirect paymentsfrom the Trump administration to U.S. farmers this year to $55.4 billion. But the taxpayer-funded account that USDA would use for the payoutdoesn’t have enough money, meaning Congress would have to provide more or the administration would have to raid funds for other programs.How Many Quids Does a Pardon Cost: Alina Habba, Trump’s former personal lawyer, is embroiled in another alleged corruption scandal, per anew reportfrom the New York Times. Venezuelan billionaire Julio Herrera Velutini, who was set to be sentenced for his role in a scheme to bribe the governor of Puerto Rico, hired Habba as general counsel at a brand new company in a deal worth $50 million. A few weeks later, Trump unconditionallypardonedhim, the governor, and others involved in the scheme. Velutini’s daughter alsodonated$3.5 million to a pro-Trump super PAC.

Focus on Fraud: Trump and Vice President Vanceannounceda new $25 million program to reward fraud whistleblowers. Thefirst recipientwas conservative influencerNick Shirley, whoseviral videoalleging childcare fraud in Minnesota preceded a federal funding freeze and the massive,deadly immigration surgein the state. Vance presented him with a $10,000 check. Shirleyclaimedthere has “never been an incentive for anyone to ever expose fraud.” In fact, there’s theFalse Claims Act, signed into law in 1863, which gives whistleblowers 15-30% of the financial penalties imposed on wrongdoers. For comparison, the Trump administration’s new program caps the award at $30,000 — despite Trump claiming it could reach seven figures — and is givenwhen charges are filedinstead of when the case is resolved. The DOJ claims to have “sole discretion” in issuing rewards, but Trumpsaidhe would be “the arbitrator of all of these decisions.” No word on whether tips involving alleged corruption by Trump, his family, his former attorney or others are eligible. The new tipline ishere.

This Rocks: For thefirst timein six years, the U.S. has anew national park. Chiricahua National Park, the nation’s 64th, is 120 miles east of Tucson, Arizona. Its 12,000 acres make it the fourth-smallest national park, but there’s a lot packed in. Forests, grasslands, and deserts all meet here in a unique ecosystem called a “sky island,” a high-altitude sanctuary that many rare plants and animals call home. It’s particularly popular amongbirders. Then there are the rocks: hundreds of wondrous toweringspires and precarious-looking piles, formed byvolcanic eruptionstens of millions of years ago. The Chiricahua Apache people, wholived herefor centuries,called the areathe “Land of Standing-Up Rocks.” Later it becameknown as“Wonderland of Rocks,” a name coined by Lillian Erickson Riggs, whose Swedish immigrant parents settled there in the late-19th century. Lillian and her family, especially her sister, mother, and husband,helped buildthe first trails in the area, from a[cabin](https://www.nps.gov/articles/series.htm?i…

Is Trump Choosing Putin? · Storyflo